You Should Always Be Prepared
by unicornscoffee
Summary: A mission goes horribly wrong, and Finn is pronounced MIA. Can the team manage to save her?
1. Chapter 1

_Looking back on the whole situation, Finn had a feeling that a simple mission to take out a mercenary gang threatening an ally planet couldn't go wrong. As a commander, she should have better prepared mentally, for the worst-case scenario._

Finn and the rest of the team were in the heart of the base camp, and were picking off the thugs one by one. The situation was looking hopeful so the team was relaxing their guard a bit, confident the day was won. Then John noticed a guy sneak out from the corner of the room, he had to be the leader, he was decked out in different armor from the rest of the others.

He had in his arms what looked to be a bomb. Pulling a wire from the side of it, it began to tick ominously. "Fall back, we have to get the hell out of here!" It seemed the thugs wouldn't give this place up, and would sacrifice themselves for it. He made sure everyone got out of the exit, before heading out himself. Noticing Finn was absent from the others, he turned back. She was at the far side of the room, caught in some debris. "Go!" Finn yelled, "It's too dangerous to come back for me! You'll all get killed!" He didn't leave people behind, but was unable to come to her aid, as the bomb on the other side of the room exploded. He was thrown back from the blast as smoke filled the area.

XX

"Nothing over here." "She's not here." The team was in the ruins of the area, searching desperately for Finn. There was no trace of her, no corpse, nothing. "So where the hell did she go?" John asked, annoyed and worried. "You guys have to see this…" Ronon said, from the other room. The others hurried over to where he was.

In a small area, what used to be some sort of armory was a message on the wall, printed in blood. It read, "The biotic has been taken, and we will have answers."

They all stared at the wall, in complete shock.


	2. Chapter 2

"So you're saying that you have no idea where they took her?"

The team was back in Atlantis, updating Elizabeth on the situation. "No, we checked the whole area, tried to talk to locals, but nobody has any idea where she was taken. I'm going to have as many men as we can spare to check out other nearby planets, but from what I'm told, this gang is very discreet, and are some of the hardest people to track down." John said, looking defeated. "Is it possible the Wraith got a hold of her?" Elizabeth asked. "Not likely", Rodney pointed out, "We didn't pick up anything on the sensors, and the Wraith never had an interest in the planet before, it's got really primitive technology."

"So that's all we can do in the meantime? Just wait, and hope she doesn't turn up dead?" Ronon asked. "We can't risk sending all of our men out, not with the constant threat of the Wraith. As a leader herself, I'm sure Finley would understand. We just have to be strong, and hope that one of the teams turn up with something useful," John says, "The writing on the wall said 'we want answers', so it's likely they don't want her dead. She's tough, I'm sure she'll be able to hold out."

"This is all well and good, but there's something you seem to be forgetting," Rodney pointed out.  
"And what would that be?"  
"Well… We have to break the news to Carson." They all looked uncomfortable and nervous at that remark.

XX

They found him in the infirmary, at his office. He looked up, surprised at seeing them all there. "Is something wrong? Has someone been hurt?" he asked, standing up. "Well, no, not exactly… But something has happened," John said, and then paused, at a loss for words. "Well, what is it?" Carson asked. "Carson… there's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to have to tell you the truth," Elizabeth replied gently.

He felt his pulse start to race, and his throat start to close, feeling anxious about whatever bad news was coming. "On the mission today…" (Here John recounts what happened during the day, careful to leave out that the message was written in blood.)

"…We're so sorry Carson, but the important thing to remember that the possibility of her being unharmed is very high, and we have all forces dedicated to getting her back."

The whole time that they were telling him that Finn was MIA, Carson felt like he was having an out of body experience, like he wasn't really hearing what John was saying. He slowly sat back down into his chair, saying, "I'm sorry, I don't feel well… I need some time… To think this over." Elizabeth gave him a squeeze on the shoulder, saying, "Hang in there. We will find her, I promise you." John tried to give him as reassuring a smile as he could and said, "Yeah doc, you have my word. She's going to come back."

XX

He didn't even hear them leave. Hours seemed to pass by, or it could only have been minutes. The weight of the situation suddenly felt real, Finn was gone. He put his head on his desk and slowly began to weep.


	3. Chapter 3

**(Sorry this took so damn long to update. As I'm sure that you're aware, I'm really good at procrastinating. I also have really bad writer's block.)**

XX

"What planet do you come from?" a guard yelled, kicking Finn in the ribs. "You're not getting any information from me, asshole. I'd sooner die then tell you anything!" Finn replied back, and then grunted from the pain. Probably a couple of broken ribs, on top of all the other injuries she sustained. It had been two days since she was captured, and during that time, she only got a few hours of sleep (they were using sleep deprivation to torture information out of her), and so far only had a bit of water. She had been a commander on her planet, and knew how to hold out against torture. But a person could only take so much, and her iron will was slowly breaking. She was tired, aching, and hungry.

"Asshole, huh?" the guard looked down at her, kicking her again. She couldn't help but let out a cry of pain. "I don't take too kindly to people talking to me like that. Really, you're just screwing yourself further. No one knows that you're here, and you are proving to be more trouble than you're worth. I'm going to enjoy killing you." He walked out of the dirty, dark cell. Her situation looked so hopeless, she was beginning to believe him. She couldn't believe that she was going to die in this place. She would rather die in battle, or something more honorable.

But then her thoughts went to Carson. She had been trying to not thinking of anything up until now, to deal with the pain. But the thought of him made her want to cry. She didn't want to die at all; she just wanted to be home with him. She dragged herself over to the wall, gingerly moving to an upright position, taking stock of her injuries. She could feel broken ribs, and a huge assortment of bruises all over her body that were probably going to be a wide variety of colours. She ran her hands through her short, spiky hair, and began to cry. But she wouldn't let herself sob, wouldn't give them the satisfaction. Footsteps outside her cell drew her attention.

A young boy's face, probably around 16 years, appeared. "I can get you out of here, but you have to stay strong."  
"Why would you bother helping me?" Finn whispered.  
"I'm from the planet that these thugs came from. I thought they had good intentions, but after seeing what they did to a lady like you… I don't want to be apart of this group. I will sneak back later tonight with a key."  
"Okay… thank you. If you manage to get us out of here, I promise you will be rewarded", Finn said, and then the face disappeared, as quietly as he came.

XX

It was early morning at Atlantis. Normally, at this time, the alarm would wake Carson and Finn up, and they would smile at each other and exchange sleepy "good mornings". But there was no one to greet this morning, and the alarm did nothing but startle Carson out of his thoughts. He hadn't been able to sleep; he spent most of the night just staring at the side that Finn would normally be sleeping on. The side that she should be sleeping on.

They told him that Finn was MIA, and there was a chance she could still be alive. He was desperately trying to remind himself that, but there were so many things that reminded him of her that made him think she was gone. The little things that she would do that he never really noticed he loved until now; how she would squint slightly when thinking hard, the cheeky smile she would get when she would flirt with him.

He shook his head, trying to get the thoughts out of his mind. She isn't dead, she can't be dead. He had to hold onto the hope that she was alive, and the team would find her. He couldn't deal with the possibility of not finding her, she _had_ to be alive.


	4. Chapter 4

A steel cage door silently opened. Finn looked up from the fetal position she was lying in. She looked at the shadow of a person that walked in, thinking, "I don't have the strength to fight anymore. If they're going to kill me, I hope they make it quick." But a face appeared, and it was the boy from the other day. "I told you I would help you," he said quietly. "Well, I only half believed it myself… Really didn't think I could trust anyone here," Finn replied. She got up stiffly, wincing as her broken ribs throbbed in pain. "Look, I'm not going to be able to use much of my biotics. Do you have a gun or anything?". The boy handed her what looked to be a shabbily made assault rifle. "This was all I was able to take from the guards," he said. "Well," Finn said, "It'll have to do. Good work."

XX

"The exist is just over this way." They had been walking for the good part of an hour, a bit slower then they would have liked, Finn was having trouble standing upright, but the thought of home was pushing her onward. "Here!" the boy said excitedly, "I told you that we'd make it!" The next moment though, a guard appeared behind him. Before Finn could say anything, he had stabbed the boy in the middle, ripping his sword out and killing him instantly. Finn didn't hesitate; she quickly shot the guard, spraying bullets into his body. This attracted the attention of others, she could hear shouting in another room. With her heart in her throat, she ran past the two bodies, knowing that there was nothing she could do to help the kind boy who saved her.

XX

As Finn was dialing up the address to Atlantis, she felt like she was in a dream. The feelings of pain, thirst, hunger, and sadness were so strong in her mind that she could swear she was already dead. When a voice from the Gate called out "identification, please", she didn't even have the energy to reply, and stumbled forward, and fell, travelling through the Gate without identifying herself.

XX

"Let them through," Elizabeth called out. "That address is the one that we have a possible lead on being the gang's location, but still, stand ready to fire." Several marines were posted around the Gate, and had their P-90's aimed. The Gate opened and closed just as quickly. They relaxed their weapons at the sight before them, but still were tense with shock. Finn was there, but she was lying on her side, and they weren't sure if she was dead or alive.

"Oh my god", Elizabeth gasps as she sees Finn lying there. She rushed over to her, shouting out an order to the infirmary over her earpiece to get a medical team there right away.

XX

As Finn was being tended to in the infirmary, Carson got a call on his earpiece. "What is it?" he asked, sounding depressed and hollow. "It's Finn, she's here, she alive", the nurse told him. That got him to his feet as he made his way to the infirmary. "But she's hurt, and we need you down here." "I'm already on my way", he replied, breathless.

XX

Finn was in bad shape when she first got there. She had several broken and bruised ribs, had a serious gash above her eye from when she fell, and was severely dehydrated and starved. The infirmary was a whirlwind, with IVs being stuck into Finn, blood tests were hurriedly issued, and scans were ordered for her ribs. They had spent the whole day getting her body back to a somewhat normal equilibrium, with quite a few tense moments.

But it was nighttime now, and things have finally calmed down. Carson dismissed a few of the nurses who had been called earlier, the infirmary was empty except for Finn, and he wanted some time alone to collect his thoughts.

The thought of someone touching his wife like that, beating her black and blue, made him angry. He never wanted to kill anyone in his life before, but the thought of someone hurting his wife made the idea of murder seem acceptable. He tried to calm himself for the moment though, and distracted himself by looking at her vital signs. They were strong and steady, and from what he could tell, she was in no pain. That thought relaxed him a bit.

As he watched her sleep, he sat down in a nearby chair and began to softly stroke her hair, relief flooding over him that she was okay. After a couple minutes of this, she slowly began to wake up. She looked confused, taking in her surroundings, and then realized she was in the infirmary, relaxed. "Carson", she said with a sleepy smile, and held her arms out for a hug. He hugged back tightly, but mindful of her IVs and broken ribs. "Finley," he sighed, "You have no idea how much I missed you."


End file.
